school clothes shopping

i have a theory, trust me on this... i think that it is a good one.

i have been out shopping for a show for the past few days and have been overcome by the urge to purchase a good number of new items for myself. mind you this is coming from a person that bravely quit her full time grown up job in order to follow her dreams in the freelance design world....aka, i am headed down the path on which most people are referred to as "starving artists".

so the guilt that i have in making these purchases is sitting somewhere next to my joy of scoring a great new pair of jeans and shoes. and as i wonder through the store, i found a place to pin the blame on my recent shopping expeditions....the time honored, american school kid tradition of school clothes shopping.

i remember back to the evenings and weekends before school starting and my mom having the patience and the courage to drag three girls into the local department stores for the ritual. I am the oldest by 2 years and 8 years, so there was a wide age range for her to cover and a complete array of fashion eccentricities to consider, as my sisters and i have VERY different taste.

GOD BLESS HER! but now i curse her, as the sudden urge to find the perfect "first day" outfit has become so ingrained in the fabric of my being that the road to becoming a "starving artist" seems to have gotten a little shorter. but atleast i can revel in the fact that i will a well dressed starving artist and there is something to be said for that!

oh yeah- i have noticed my most hated moments of school clothes shopping is also something that was not an exclusive practice to my mom...for those of you who were forced to try on clothes in the middle of store aisle or inside the clothes rounders at the stores...you know what i am talking about and i feel your pain.

i was witness to such an event this afternoon and just wanted to tell the mother that her child will NEVER forget this and may possibly be scared from this experience...i mean look at me! no, really, it is not so bad....no really it is!